Becoming a sustainable organization requires a multi-faceted approach that reaches across the full enterprise, unfortunately there is no silver bullet.

The good news is an increasing number of tools, techniques and processes are emerging to drive sustainability.

One tool that is often underestimated is the power of a policy approach and one policy area that is becoming increasingly popular is procurement. With many organizations already having some form of procurement or purchasing policy in place, enhancing the sustainability of an existing policy or developing one from scratch, is a natural next step for organizations looking to embed sustainability across value chain.

Focusing on procurement as a vehicle for Sustainability has many benefits from the reduction of costs to avoiding supply chain disruptions to meeting expectations of customers. The rub is that with no directions or a process to follow, sustainable procurement can seem like a daunting challenge. Here are 4 steps any organization can take to move procurement in a more sustainable direction:

1. Scope/Boundary Setting: Identify the scope and boundary for the policy.  Start with a general area focusing on the most commonly purchased items and expand from there. For example, start with a scope of general office supplies and focus on those items purchased regularly. Develop an inventory of these common items such as paper, pens, folders, note pads etc.

2. Define Sustainability Attributes: Once the scope and boundary is decided, determine the desired sustainability attributes for the targeted items. When developing these attributes it helps to look at 3 general areas: Economic (i.e cost, quality and delivery) Environmental (i.e recycled content and recyclable at end of life) Social (i.e working conditions, testing practices). With a list of attributes decided, rank the top attributes and decide how […]

Who says games are just for kids? People of all ages enjoy playing games in their free time. However, games are quickly becoming a must have in the toolbox of sustainability leaders across the globe. In fact, experts and practitioners around the world are coining gamification as the most disruptive force to engagement since the emergence of social media.

Traditionally defined, gamification is the use of various game based mechanics such as the accumulation of points, awarding of badges, issuing of challenges and development of leader-boards. A traditional example includes existing loyalty programs such as the airline frequent flyer programs where participants accumulate points that are redeemable for various “prizes” but are also rewarded handsomely via lounge access, priority boarding etc. when a certain points level is achieved.

With the proliferation of social media, smart phones, tablets and other devices, leading organizations across the globe have realized that leveraging the concept of gamification to engage employees, suppliers and other stakeholders in Green and Sustainability can lead to some epic wins.

Take the Partners in Project Green “People Power Challenge” for example. Companies in the GTA sign up to participate in this year long challenge. Participating companies are awarded points for completing tasks across 3 categories in 3 different challenges related to Energy, Waste and Water. A live leader-board shows which organizations are currently “winning” and at the end of the game, the leaders in each challenge along with an overall leader receive cash prizes to go towards a green initiative suggested by an employee during the game. The result is a win-win for all involved as companies drive employee engagement and awareness, receive innovative ideas for projects, have the opportunity to raise capital for green projects, not […]